


Plastic Roses

by 263Adder



Series: Paper Chain [12]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Abusive Father, Adopted Fics, All the same age, Childhood, Established Relationship, F/M, Gift Fic, Holidays, Romantic Fluff, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:41:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29439891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/263Adder/pseuds/263Adder
Summary: Life on the run is hard, but even two runaways can find time for Valentine's Day.
Relationships: Number Five | The Boy/Vanya Hargreeves
Series: Paper Chain [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1572361
Comments: 12
Kudos: 67





	Plastic Roses

**Author's Note:**

  * For [fiveyaaas](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fiveyaaas/gifts).



> Fiveyaas - you deserve this for getting us over 800 mark. No one else has contributed to the ship as much as you have, and I am forever proud to be able to call you my friend. Besides, Valentine's Day is the day to treat those we love 💝

Five had moved them again.

They never stayed anywhere long and for good reason. Despite the public story, they knew they were being pursued and couldn’t afford to let their guard down. Not until they were legally adults and couldn’t be trapped. Even then, Reginald could have them arrested for theft of funds but – considering the tales he had woven – doing so would only expose him as a liar.

Whenever Five was out getting food or other supplies, Vanya would fill the time by quietly watching the television set for news on The Umbrella Academy and Five’s disappearance. They had waited with bated breath for two whole days before the fiction began to emerge.

Using unreleased footage spliced together from old interviews, Five made a brief apology for his conduct on Thanksgiving. The Academy’s publicist then took over, coming onto the screen with a prepared script. It was a joke which got out of hand. There was no girlfriend, and no Vanya. There was some truth, however, as they were thrilled to announce Five’s early acceptance into college: which would mean his temporary departure from the group. For privacy reasons, they would not reveal where he would go, but they expected he would return to the Academy once he attained his degree.

The reel was replayed several times before interest died out. No matter how often Vanya watched the news, no one questioned the story’s credibility.

Five was furious when he saw it. Vanya was only relieved. Naively she believed Reginald had let them go and only cared about saving himself public embarrassment. Thankfully, Five hadn’t been so foolish; otherwise, they would have been caught.

Relocating made sense – so the motels or landlords wouldn’t catch them – but as the months went on, they moved more frequently. And they would barely settle into a place before Five announced he had to leave to run errands. Vanya didn’t understand it. Other than food, there was no reason for him to keep leaving. At first, without her medication to keep her anxiety under check, she believed he was tiring of her company and left to find some peace.

A fortnight before Christmas, her insecurity spiralled out of control. After a nasty panic attack made her blurt out her suspicions, Five had assured her it wasn’t true. He admitted he was conducting surveillance on the Academy to ascertain their plan of action. Vanya had listened to his explanation, finding nothing but relief that the fault wasn’t hers, _until_ he admitted to visiting the Academy.

“What?” She exclaimed, fear clawing at her throat. “What if they saw you. They might have kept you there and…”

Seizing her hands, Five promised, “I would never do something that would get us separated. I knew they were away on a mission, I checked the cameras so I wouldn’t run into Pogo or Grace and it allowed me to look at the research. I grabbed some of your meds too. They won’t last forever, but at least we can wean you off them properly.”

“And? What are they planning?” She asked impatiently, not interested in her pills.

“They found the motel we went to for the first night. And a couple of other places we’ve been to.”

Eyes widening, Vanya asked how it was possible. “We’ve been so careful.”

“He has contacts everywhere. I think we should seriously consider moving out of the city.”

“You said it wasn’t safe to go to the bus station.” She reminded. “All the cameras.”

“I know. I’ll have to jump us out.”

Shaking her head, she insisted, “You can’t jump that far. You’ll get  _ hurt _ .”

Shushing her as she choked on the word, Five pulled her into a hug. With his heart thrumming under her ear, Vanya began to calm down.

“I’ll make small jumps. We’ll start going east, moving into motels closer to the city’s border. Okay?”

“Are we going to a smaller town?”

“No. It’s easier to stick out in a small community. I was considering Boston. College city, so there are a lot of people our age to blend in with. I bet it’ll snow – how do you like the sound of a white Christmas?” He grinned, trying to sound encouraging.

It was only a light dusting, but Five had found them an empty house with a fireplace to curl in front of. They had no gifts to exchange and, without Grace, there was no grand feast to consume. Nevertheless, they agreed it was the best Christmas they’d ever had; munching on cold pizza while they sat curled in each other’s arms. They moved to a motel before New Year’s Eve, when the homeowner would return. It was there that they nearly got caught.

Five was out on his usual patrol to check the perimeter was secure, leaving Vanya on her own. She had some knitting to keep her occupied, and was working on making them a blanket for their bed. Something colourful and cosy, that was distinctly theirs. She hoped to have it finished in time for Valentine’s Day.

Using a book from the local library, she attempted a new finishing stitch for the edges but only succeeded in stabbing her finger. Lightly cursing herself, she stuck it in her mouth to ensure no blood ended up on the blanket. When Five landed directly before her, she almost choked on her own hand.

Before she could ask, he held a finger to his lips. Instantly, Vanya stilled but, as he hastily began to gather their belongings, she followed him into action.

She didn’t dare make a noise until he had teleported them into an alley several blocks away, waiting until he finished looking around and exhaled with relief.

“What was that about?”

He dropped their cases to tug at his hair, in a familiar act of frustration.

Vanya opened her mouth to chastise him for risking her violin’s neck, but she was silenced by his deathly tight grip as he yanked her into an embrace.

Hugging him back, she smoothed his hair back down, sensing he needed a moment to compose himself. Five was sensible however and knew they couldn’t linger. After a few seconds, he pulled away and picked up their things.

“Well?” Vanya reminded softly, helping him grab everything.

“I was looking around the building and saw Allison in the front office.”

Her heart plummeted.

“She was talking to the manager, so I jumped into the back room to listen. They knew we were there, and she rumoured information on all the empty rooms. Which would have included the one we were in. I went onto the roof and saw Luther and Ben downstairs, getting into position to storm into the ground floor rooms.”

“He’s still after us.” She sighed.

Five nodded even though it wasn’t a question.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.”

Grabbing hold of her, he jumped them across town where they should be safe.

* * *

Five rarely slept. After cuddling Vanya until she slipped into an easy slumber – sleeping deeper than she ever had at the mansion – he’d crawl out from under the blankets and start planning. Usually, working on ways to evade Reginald. Looking for new places to stay, going to local police stations to see if the Umbrella Academy had made contact with them for backup, or pacing the room trying to come up with a defensive strategy in case they were caught. For Five, escape was easy; but if his former teammates got to Vanya they’d be in trouble. He wanted her to learn some defensive moves, and incorporate some exercise into her daily routine in case she needed to run, but that was a conversation for another day.

Instead, he worked on his less prioritised – but more enjoyable – plans. Ones for Vanya.

On nights he allowed himself a momentary break from patrolling, he focused on their future. Looking for job openings and ideal locations for him to find work while Vanya enrolled in music school. Thinking how they could go public, making it even harder for Reginald to reel them back in.

That night, he concentrated on their more imminent future: Valentine’s Day. He only had a few hours to prepare; aware of the gift Vanya had hidden under the bed for him. After their rather dismal Christmas, relocating too swiftly to find time to present shop, he was determined to make something of this holiday.

There were few options open to him, considering the life they were forced to lead, but he had a simple idea in mind. Only, it would involve leaving Vanya alone for a few hours.

He hated to do so. While he would rather cut out his own tongue than call her ordinary – believing her to be the most remarkable person in his life and worth more than every member of the Umbrella Academy combined (himself included) – she was powerless. Seeing his former teammates in the motel parking lot had marked them as their enemy, and they were a powerful enemy to have. Part of Five had hoped they would refuse to partake in an attempted capture, but he knew how much leverage Reginald had over them all. He couldn’t hold it against them; if he were in their shoes, Reginald would only have to make a threat against Vanya, and he would do anything he was commanded to do. She was his Achilles heel and now everyone knew it.

Still, he only planned to leave for a short while and he had checked the perimeter. She should be safe.

He grabbed some cash from the room’s safe. Five was past the days of having to steal for her, although he looked forward to the day he could use his own money. There was something quite frustrating about still being dependant on Reginald, in this minor way, even if he could argue some of that money was owed for his labour. Not to mention the portion he should have been received for of all the merchandise sales.

With a sigh, he crept back over to the bed to make sure Vanya was still sleeping peacefully. She looked restless, likely due to the unexpected storm raging outside the motel, but unlikely to wake anytime soon.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and jumped out of the room.

* * *

Waking up in the usual fashion, tucked in Five’s arms as he snored against her neck, Vanya blinked into the warm sunlight streaming through the windows.

Twisting in his embrace, she was determined to sleep a little while longer and wanted to bury herself against his side. After battling through her recurring nightmares, of the Umbrella Academy wrenching Five away as she stood crying out for him, she had found safe haven in happier dreams. Imaging the future they had planned out together. Secure in a home of their own with a dog running around their feet.

A plume of red behind Five’s sleeping form distracted her from returning to the pleasantry, however. Sitting up, as much as she could in the tight hug, Vanya looked at the giant bouquet of roses sitting on Five’s bedside table. Fully bloomed and vibrantly red.

Fighting her way out of his arms, she clambered over his wakening form to reach them.

Gruffly, he muttered complaints about being disturbed but she ignored him. 

When he realised what she was cooing over, he seemed less annoyed.

“Oh, those.” He said through a yawn. “I was told a dozen roses are the traditional gift. Plus, twelve is our number. As I have pointed out before.”

Vanya sighed good-naturedly as she ran her fingers over the soft petals. “We are not naming our dog twelve.”

“I know. We’re naming him Mr Pennycrumb.” Five said matter-of-factly. “But the  _ second _ dog…”

Laughing, she insisted, “Will, also, not be called twelve. Twelve is not a real name.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right, Seven.”

“Aren’t I always, Five?” She grinned, glancing over her shoulder. He was rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hand, his hair handsomely mussed up. “When did you get these?”

“After you went to sleep. I also got you,” he reached around her to pull open the drawer, “these.”

She accepted the large heart-shaped box which, after yanking off the lid, she saw was full of chocolate. Popping one in her mouth, she pressed another to Five’s lips.

He took it off her with a mumbled thanks.

“Hang on. I’ll get your gift.” Vanya proclaimed excitedly, crawling off the bed.

Grabbing it from its hiding spot, she handed it over and sat expectantly beside him.

She had loosely covered it in one of the bathroom towels in place of gift wrap, which he impatiently tugged away. The handmade blanket inside was a beautiful light green, with dark green edging. She used extra thick wool, so it was wonderfully heavy and would keep them warm during the New England winter.

“This is beautiful, Ven.” Five said, holding it up so he could admire her work. “You’re really good at this.”

“I thought the wool would match the green in your eyes.” She admitted with a shy smile.

Spreading the blanket over the bed so it would cover their legs, Five tucked them both in to protect from the early morning chill.

“Thank you, valentine. I love it.” He said, pressing a soft kiss to her kips.

“You’re welcome,” Vanya replied. “And thank you for the flowers. They’re so beautiful.”

“They’ll be dead in a few days. I’ll get you something more permanent next year.”

“It doesn’t matter how long they last. Besides…”

She reached over to grab a book from her bedside, the only one she had taken from the Academy. From it, she plucked the white rose petal she had preserved there from their first Valentine’s Day as a couple and held it up.

“…I can do this again.”

Five gently took it off her. It took a moment to recognise it.

“I can’t believe you kept this.”

“I keep everything you give me, Five,” Vanya said gently. “Except for the candy. That’ll be gone in a few hours.”

He chuckled. “I did try to find you some Sweethearts, but the store didn’t have any and I didn’t want to leave you alone for too long.”

“That’s okay. I prefer chocolate, anyway.”

“I know.” Five said. “Me too.”

Snuggling against his side, Vanya thanked him again.

“It wasn’t much.”

“Yes, it was.” She corrected. “You’ve made every holiday we’ve had together special, no matter how difficult the circumstances. I want you to know how much I appreciate that.”

“You deserve it. You deserve everything.”

“We both do.” Vanya insisted. “And we’ll have it. No matter how much Reginald tries to stop us.”

Five replaced the petal in her book, making sure it was safe, before pulling her back against him. He cuddled her softly, smiling against her forehead as he savoured the warmth she always inspired.

“He won’t win, Vanya. I’ll keep us safe.” Five promised. “Nothing is ever going to keep us apart.”

Wrapping her arm around his waist, Vanya allowed him to pull them both down on the bed to snuggle under the blanket. Safe and warm, but most importantly together.

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe I've written 12 of these stories for Paper Chains. And 3 for Valentine's Day, which isn't even a real holiday 😂 Oh, I mentioned twelve in the fic btw as 5+7=12. 
> 
> I know I haven't updated my TUA fics much, but I've been busy working on my book. Which I am in need of feedback for before I try and find a literary agent, so if you can help me out by giving it a read, you can find it on Inkitt (https://www.inkitt.com/stories/drama/475131).
> 
> I hope this fic finds you all well. Stay safe 💕


End file.
